Haile Gerima Returns with “Black Lions, Roman Wolves”—A Documentary on The Second Italo-Ethiopian War.

Legendary US-based Ethiopian filmmaker Haile Gerima, the director of popular film Sankofa, returns with an epic documentary that captures Ethiopia’s struggles against fascist Italy in the Second Italo-Ethiopian War (1935-1941).

The 5-part, ten-hour-plus documentary, titled Black Lions, Roman Wolves: The Children of Adwa, borrows from several captivating historical clips and visuals from Ethiopia archived by colonial Italy, the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany and France. To achieve authenticity and preserve memories, the documentary includes firsthand testimonials assembled from conversations with veterans of the Ethiopian war.

For more than three decades, this documentary has been in development, with the filmmaker keen on exploring an African perspective on the historical victory against imperialism. With the film currently in post-production, Gerima continues to gather support ahead of its release.

“My aim was to artfully unravel the Ethiopian people’s unwavering quest for self-determination and sovereignty,” said Gerima concerning the vision for the film. “The narrative of the patriotic war of resistance following the fascist invasion stretches beyond the battlefield, encompassing a battle fought within the hearts and minds of the people.”

An award-winning independent filmmaker and professor of film at Howard University in Washington, D.C., the United States, Gerima has been committed to making this masterpiece from the days of his trip to Ethiopia in the 1990s—influenced by the ineradicable scars of war on the collective memory of a nation. Relying on the historical records and sociopolitical antecedents, the documentary promises to also deliver a passionate representation of a nation’s unbreakable spirit in tough times. One of the issues which the film addresses are the roots of radical ethnic nationalism, believed to be derived from a politically motivated and sinister misinterpretation of Ethiopian history. This misrepresentation, which the documentary hopes to fix, leads to a broader discourse around the single-story, pessimistic and stereotypical portrayals of African cultures and beliefs by non-Africans. Mainstream media are, thus, encouraged to dissociate from the peddling of such stereotypical and false narratives about Africa that may attract unhealthy and devastating consequences for the continent.

Born and raised in Ethiopia, Gerima relocated to the US in 1967, taking after his father who was a dramatist. Gerima studied acting in Chicago before gaining admission into the UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television, where he got exposed to and became inspired by Latin American films. This gave him more confidence to pursue his interest in preserving the cultural legacy of Africans, especially his people. Following the completion of his thesis film Bush Mama (1975), Gerima earned international recognition with Harvest: 3000 Years (1976), an Ethiopian drama that scooped the Grand Prize at the Locarno film festival.

Gerima released the award-winning Ashes & Embers (1982) and documentaries such as Wilmington 10—U.S.A 10,000 (1978) and After Winter: Sterling Brown (1985), after which he shot what can be referred to as a cinematic chef d’oeuvre—Sankofa (1993). At first, the groundbreaking film was not warmly received by notable distributors in the US, which compelled Gerima to market and distribute the film himself across the African-American communities and other independent theatrical outlets in the country.

In 1996, Gerima created the Sankofa Video and Bookstore in Washington, DC., a cultural and intellectual hub that provides room for creativity-driven conversations and events such as film screenings, artist showcase, book signings and scholar forums. Another recent film of his, Teza (2008), won the Jury and Best Screenplay awards at the Venice Film Festival. At 77, Gerima’s latest and anticipated cinematic effort, Black Lions, Roman Wolves: The Children of Adwa, adds up to his legacy as a creative and filmmaker who, despite having evolved and enjoyed immense success, is unwilling to rest on his laurels and remains committed to telling narratives that accurately depict Africa’s sociopolitical history and resonate with African audiences.